Stanford meets Louisville no. 22 to Senior Day

Saturday at 12:30 p.m. PT on the ACC Network, Stanford football will face No. 23 in Louisville for Senior Day. Stanford comes in at 2-7 overall and 1-5 in the ACC, while Louisville comes in at 6-3 overall and 4-2 in the ACC.

VIDEO: Stanford Football Weekly Press Conference: Louisville

Last time out: Stanford is coming off a bye week after not playing last week. The previous week before that they lost at NC State by a final score of 59-28.

SUMMARY: Stanford falls apart at NC State

READ: Five questions about the November city

Senior Walk: There has been a bit of drama this week over the senior walk. At first, it was worded in a way to the team that only players who had to finish their college football careers after the season could participate in the senior walk. This sparked outrage among players who were about to graduate but wanted to open up the possibility of playing elsewhere next season. The decision was reversed and now all academic seniors can go if they want.

Personally, I think it was the right decision. Adventures like this are about the players and honoring their contribution to the team. If a guy wants to go with his family and hold flowers, let him. I don’t really understand why this problem would occur in the first place. Just a case of poor communication. I don’t think so head coach Troy Taylor meant something bad by it. Just something that could have been handled better up front and thankfully was fixed in the end.

About Louisville: The Cardinals are having a strong season, hence their presence in the AP Top 25. They are coming off back-to-back wins at Boston College and at home against Clemson. Like Stanford, they also come off a bye week. Every loss they’ve had has been by seven points, so they’ve been in every game they’ve played. They should certainly be confident in their ability to pick up a third straight win given how hard it has been for Stanford.

Redshirt senior quarterback Tyler Shough has played very well for the Cardinals, throwing for 20 touchdown passes and just five interceptions to go along with 2,504 yards on a 63.16 completion percentage. Shoough’s favorite receiving target is redshirt senior wide receiver Yes’ Corey Brookswho has 48 receptions for 841 yards and eight touchdowns. Junior wide receiver Chris Bell is the second target on this team with 23 receptions for 380 yards and two touchdowns. On the ground, the freshman running back Isaac Brown has rushed for 800 yards and seven touchdowns on 106 carries for an average of 7.5 yards per carry. carry.

On defense, second linebacker Stanquan Clark leads in total tackles with 57.0 (35 solo). Clark also has 4.5 tackles for loss. Leads the team in sacks as a redshirt junior defensive lineman Jared Dawson and redshirt senior defensive lineman Logan Tramel with 3.0 bags each. In terms of tackles for loss, senior defensive lineman Ashton Gillotte leads the pack in that department with 5.5 tackles for loss.

The Cardinals only have two interceptions on the season as a defense, so ball-hawking isn’t their strong suit on defense. They are much better at playing in the backfield and supporting teams.

As for their kicking game, senior Brock Travelstead has gone 13-20 (65.0%) on his field goals. He’s 4-5 on punts in the 20-29 yard range and 3-3 on punts in the 30-39 yard range, so inside the 40 yard line he’s pretty reliable. Outside the 40 yard line and especially from 50+ yards out is where he starts to struggle. He is 5-7 on kicks from 40-49 yards out and 1-5 from 50+ yards out. His length is 56 yards, so he has the leg strength.

Keys to the game: For Stanford, the first thing they need to do is keep getting positive value. Louisville will look to back them up and force a lot of 2nd and long, 3rd and long situations. If Stanford can keep moving the ball forward and avoid getting backed up, it will really help them win this game. Running the ball will be really key to this one.

Second, Stanford must contain Ja’Corey Brooks. He will look to fire up the vulnerable Stanford secondary. If Stanford can make things tough for him and not allow him to have a big day, Stanford might make it a little interesting. If he burns them for a couple of long touchdowns, it will be over very quickly.

Third, Stanford needs to come up with big plays on 3rd down. Both in attack and defence. Stanford’s defense has had moments of delivering in these situations, as has the offense. It’s just a matter of doing it consistently.

Finally, Stanford has to take care of the ball. This has been a problem all season for them, whether it’s interceptions or fumbles. Stanford needs to make sure that if they lose this game, it won’t be because of beating themselves.

Forecast: I have to play with Louisville in this one. I’ll be shocked if Stanford pulls this one off. I had Louisville win pretty comfortably: 42-17.

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